John Sanderson

Ohio State University’s Fisher College of Business

“I’m a huge PC gamer, have seen a million(ish) movies, and think pizza is life.”

Hometown: Prescott, Arizona

Fun Fact About Yourself: I went to a tiny high school on a working ranch in middle-of-nowhere Arizona. Extracurricular activities included shoveling horse manure and posing with a cowboy hat and a hay straw in one’s mouth.

Undergraduate School and Major: Boston University, B.S. in Film & Television

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: STRIVR, Producer/Production Manager

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: Prior to moving to Columbus to join Fisher’s Class of 2021, I worked predominantly in entertainment. I’m also a huge tech nerd (a fellow classmate recently joked that my Columbus apartment is basically a Best Buy in disguise) and am a big believer in the future of virtual and augmented reality. At STRIVR, I was tasked with heading up their newly-formed production division. We specialized in creating virtual reality experiences to train employees at several Fortune 100 companies. Combining what I’d learned in entertainment with my love for emerging technology like VR was an incredibly fulfilling experience. It also helped to strengthen my managerial skills, as the position involved overseeing and facilitating multiple production teams concurrently.

What quality best describes the MBA classmates you’ve met so far and why? My father went to college in Ohio as an undergrad, and while growing up he always told me that he met some of the most genuine, wonderful people of his life during those four years. And I can say with utmost confidence that such traits absolutely still hold true. Authenticity both personally and professionally is a value I think cannot be understated, and every single classmate at Fisher I’ve interacted with has demonstrated such with flying colors.

Aside from your classmates, what was the key factor that led you to choose this program for your full-time MBA and why was it so important to you? As I’m sure pretty much everyone can attest to post-undergrad, learning and developing one’s professional and interpersonal skills doesn’t end in the classroom. The recently-overhauled MBA curriculum at Fisher makes this clear, which is one of the main reasons I decided to jump ship from LA and spend two years across the country in Columbus. I was recently elected to partake in Fisher’s Global Applied Projects (GAP) program this spring, which involves traveling to a foreign country and applying everything we’ve learned out in the real world as a business consultant. It was one of the first elements of Fisher’s MBA program that caught my eye as a prospective student, and I absolutely can’t wait.

What club or activity are you looking most forward to in business school? Fisher is no slouch when it comes to case competitions, a couple of which I participated in during my first semester. While cash prizes will forever be a compelling incentive, the opportunity to integrate newfound skills and strengthen my abilities as a presenter will continue to be a huge motivator for me.

What was the most challenging question you were asked during the admissions process?
It was a version of a question I expected walking in, but phrased in a way that surprised me: “Why leave LA?” It’s not uncommon for an admissions interviewer to ask a question like, “Why choose our program over others?” I was asked the latter almost verbatim when interviewing elsewhere. Fisher’s admissions question, in particular, was redirected in a way that felt more personal — it made me really have to break down not just why I admired their program, but what led me to the decision of leaving behind everything I had built both personally and professionally over six years to join their upcoming class.

What led you to pursue an MBA at this point in your career? Despite my background in entertainment and overall love for all things VR/AR, I ultimately realized that there was still so much more to learn about the business world as a whole. I may never be a financial analyst or a CPA, but having a core understanding of the fundamentals that make up any business is paramount if one wishes to eventually be a successful and influential leader. Like many pursuing an MBA degree, I believe strongly in the power of transformative leadership. Despite how passionate one might be about a particular field, fully understanding the tenets of business from multiple perspectives is an absolute must.

What other MBA programs did you apply to?
Mays Business School, Texas A&M University; Carroll School of Management, Boston College; Owen School of Management, Vanderbilt University; Argyros School of Business & Economics, Chapman University; Marshall Business School, USC

How did you determine your fit at various schools? A part of me felt that the easy choice was to go with a school that offered an MBA degree with a specialization in entertainment. However, despite acknowledging the value of what they had to offer, there was that incessant voice in the back of my mind that kept insisting I do something different and stretch beyond my comfort zone. Considering the advantages (and potential disadvantages) of pursuing an MBA degree in a completely new environment across the country was not something I took lightly. But I ultimately realized it was the right decision to make. When I interviewed at Fisher, they not only respected but encouraged being a self-starter. Any good college program will equip you with an array of tools and resources to help you achieve your goals, but the very best encourage their students to find new avenues to apply them. And I knew that if I ultimately decided to move from LA to earn an MBA, it’d have to be a school I was convinced shared those same ideologies. 

What was your defining moment and how did it shape who you are? I’m going to challenge that question (blame case competitions) by instead offering a series of moments that always ends the same way.

It’s early afternoon on a Saturday. I just walked out of my town’s movie theater with my dad. I’m still way too full from the large bag of popcorn. I know he hates hearing me eat because it makes too much noise in the theater — and yet he buys me one anyway. Maybe I’m 10, or maybe it was that time I visited right before moving to Columbus to get an MBA. We spend our car ride back home debating the rating we’d give the movie out of 10, as if our carefully written critique was due at the top of the following morning. After some bickering and agreeing-to-disagreeing, we eventually settle back at home, walk into his TV room, and put on another movie. Rinse and repeat — except this time he doesn’t have to listen to his whiny kid eat crunchy popcorn.

I can’t remember a single, specific instance of this that stood out against the countless others. In my mind, it was the same moment happening again and again. And it has and will continue to define who I am. Moments like these made me not just fall in love with movies, but also realize the power of a shared experience. And it doesn’t have to be with a family member, a friend, or even that dude at your local AMC who is also way too loud when eating popcorn. Nowadays. I frequently go to the movies by myself. Earlier today, I went to a movie alone and, as the credits rolled, most of the fifteen other people in my theater started clapping. I hadn’t planned on clapping, nor did I necessarily expect to share a moment of pure awesomeness with total strangers. But I clapped anyway, and it felt great.

Where do you see yourself in ten years? Going against the grain. I respect the status quo, but at the same time the very reason I’m getting an MBA is so I have the tools to break it. Not alone, but with other crazy, nerdy, weird people like myself. Okay, my future colleagues don’t have to love Star Wars. But that isn’t to say I won’t insist on making sure everyone on my team has seen The Empire Strikes Back.